Gravimeter



Inne 22, 1965 B. P. BLASINGAME SPACER I7 III/I/I/IIIIIIIIII FIGURE l 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 SLIP RING ASSEMBLY I4 DRIVE MOTOR I3 DRIVE SHAFT I2 SENSITIVE ELEMENT II IN V EN TOR.

Jlllle 1955 B. PBLASINGAME 3,190,121

Inne 22, 1965 B. P. BLASINGAME 3190121 GRAVIMETER Filed Jan. 19, 1962 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 |U sausmvr. AXI5 i w FIGURE 5 CRYSTAL OSCILLATOR AG VOLTAGE OUTPUT FIGURE 4 IN ENTOR.

governmental purposes witho ut payment to meof any royalty thereon. v

The invention descn'bed herein pertains to the prec1se measurernent of the force or accelerat1on cf gravity. It

beldngS to a large dass -'oii instruments l now as gravirneters. v

The acizeleraticin cf .gravityl has hing been measured by observing the period of oscillation of pendulums made of Irivar or other material which hasa very 10W coefi'icient of thermal eXpansion. With reasonable control of temperature, very precise measuie'meflts of gravityone part in a miliion for example; canbe made by observing these pvendulnms over'a very lon'g time. For'fielcl use, however pendulums have been replaced by calibrated sen- Sitive spring scale devices. Mar'1y variations in these devices exist; all are ai1'ned' at incre'asing sensitivity, total dynamic range, portability, quickness ofreacling and so on. In all these devices, the basic means is some sort of carefully calibrate d combination of a massand sprin'g suspension systern. 1 M

An object of this invention is to provide a hermetically sealed instrument for the measureme-nt of the acceleration of gravity with remote electrical indication of the force of gravity so that measurements may be made in inaccessible locations such as under weiter or in deep Walls. -Another object of this invention is to provide an instru ment for the measureme'nt of the aceeleration of gravity cf unusual sensitivity over a greatly extended total dynamic range.

Another object of this invention isto .provide an instrument for the measurement of theacce'leration of gravity cf unusually rugged design so that it is readily gortable and adapted-to extended use in the field with infrequent recalibration.

Still another object of this iiivention is to provide a gravimeter in which the. graviteitional acceleration is inferred from the frec1uency of an alternating voltage since means for measurement cf frequency to great precision are readily available. 1 1

The device of this invention ditfers fun'damentally from the spring scale dass of instruments inthat it is a forc'e ortorque balance in which a torque caused by the acceleration bf gravity is balanced by a torque cansed by centrifug'al =acceleratih. The centrifugal acceleration is generated by rotation of the assembly by an electric motor locked synchronously with the driving alternating Cur- -rent. 1 In this waythe measurement of gravity is rednced to a measur'ernent of the freqnency of an alternating voltage. Frequency is a rather fundamental 4quantity and means for its measurement to great precision are readily available as commercial instruments. npon calibrated spring suspensionis completely eliminatezd; the calibration is dependent only upon the relative geometry of the sensitive element which, in turn, is essen- Reliance United States Patent pendulurn axis.

and thermostat are provided to maintain the entire systerh at a scimewhat uniform temperatun. Thli, the only connections to the sensitive element are eleetrical. The

unit is hermetically sealed and no access for observation is requi1'ed. V The unit may be operated remotely las under the sea or in inaccessible Walls being connected t-o the auiziliary equipment by electrical cabling only..

The sensitive element is driven by a hysteresig nieten This type of motor possesseS the charcteristic that it is self synchronizing with the frequency of the app lied alteniating voltage. T hus,the frequericzy appliedto the motor is a prec'z'isemeasure of the spej'ed of. the sensitive element. 1 7' 7 Thejdevice is arranged so that the gravitatibnal acceleration"actsfon the asyrnmetrical pendulum causing a torquetending to rotate the pendulum assembly-'about the The centrifug-al accelera'tion due to the rotatioi1 of-the pendulum about the sensitive axis acts on the synnnetric pendulums causing, a torque balancing the tdrque due to gravity acting on theasymmetiric pendulunn Should thesetwo torques be unbalanced ;by an incrcase in. the gravitationai forcfe, for example, the penduluin assembly'rotates away f1omits null position and this displacementis indicatedby an electrical signal from the The system rn'av vhelmade 2i1itom atic by a servon1echanism arrang e d to adjust the frequency to reducethe output electn'cal signal to null. In a more simple device this fnnction maybe performed by a human op'ertor.- y t Qtherifeatures and constructional details will'becorne appzireht frbm the following descriptions when rea d in connectihn With the accompanying figures, wherein: -FIGURE 1;is a diagramm-aticassembly sketch with a sectioi1 cut away from the ou tside case showing the drive motoraind the outside of the sensitive. element; FIGURE 2 isa pictorial ass embly sketch of thesehsitive element with a section cut away from the outside ofthecask=;- 7

FIGURE 3 is"a sehem atic of the sensitive element used to derive the equzitionsiridicating theoperation and sensitivity of-the instrument;

FIGURE 4 is aSchematic of an arrngeinefit forgeri- V erating alternating voltage3of precisely known frequency;

and

FIGURE 5 is a Schematic 0f ment of the invention;

The terms fo'rce and acceleraition are used aknost inter- :hangeablyjherein; By Newtons law, F:ma, it is elear that acceleratibn is sirnply the force per unit mass. Thus, we may speak of the force per unit mass exerted by gravity or more simpl'y, the acceleration of gravity. The acceleration of gravity, g, varies systematically with latitude bean alternative emboditween about 983 and 978 cm./see." from-pjole to e quator floated at near neutral buoyancy in a high density fluid.

in the density of the earth.

and randomly due to mountains and oceans and variations Referring to the pictorial schematic ofthe sensitive element as shown in FIGURE 3, the general scheme of mechanization is described in the following. Withthe Isensitive axis verticahgravity acting on the unsymmetric mass, M exerts a torque. on the central pendulous assembly; This torque is counteracted by the torque resulting fromfthe centrifugal forces due tQ the rotational rate, W,

act ing on the two Symmetrie masSes, M; Preoise balance of these two torques is attainiedby adjulstment of the rotational speed, W, so that'the arm mounting the mass M is maintainedexactly perpendiculartothe sensitiv'e axis. Undenthese conditionsytherotationalspeed, W, is rela'ted to the. Ideal Value of the force of gravity. The

rotationalspeed, W, may be readily'ciontrolled and known to greatprecision( Y A number of features provide a practical instrunient sucha's is illustrated in FIGURE 2. The firsti of these is that the central pendulous assembly mounting the 1msyn 1metric mass 1 (shown withadjustable radius for calibration purposkes) and the symmetric masses 2 is rigidly' attached to or made an integral part of a float assenibly 3; the simple gimbal isactually a case 4 sunoni1ding thefloat, and a dense fluid fills the space 5 betweefl the float andthe.case. Without this rovision, the centrifugal force acting on.the nnsymmetric mas's wouldeause the entire pendlous assembly to move outward from the sensitive axis distorting thetorsion wire6. However, with the 'fioated assembly just described, arrangecl so that the pendulous assembly-is maintained just slightly lighter than neutral buoyancy, power ful centering forees;result from the centrifugal field acting on the floatatioi1 fluid causing the, pendulous float assembly to be maintained at the exact ce nter of rotation. Thisfloated designcauses 30 the suspension to be unaflected by accelerations. Thus, i

any shock is transmitted through the flui d so thatthia "torsion wiresmay be made very delicate and yet the instrument is'especially rugged.

Another necessary feature provides a means to detect anglardisplacement ofthe pendulous assembly so that appropriate adjustment of the rotational.spe'ed.can be Qmade until the exabtly balance'd condition is realized.

An electrical=sig'nal generator or rather conventional design such as a microsyn is used for kthis,purpose. An armature 7 ofmagnetic material is meide an integral part of the -pendulous float assembly. The statbr 8 cf the signal generatorwith windings 9 Which'is shown sectioned through two of its poles is fastened to the case and the eXciting 'voltage and outp'ut sigma-1 areconnebted Ihr0llgh slip rings (nt shown) inountedbn the sensitive axis 10.

The arrangement by which the sensitive element is mounted, rotated, and contacted ele trically is shown diagrammatically in FIGURE 1. As shown, the sensi tiv e element 11 is fixed tothe shaft" 12;0f an electrical 'motor'l3. Thissame s liaft 12 carries slip rings to which the coils of theelectrical signalgeneratorare connected.

The stationary brushes of the slip ring assembly 14'a1{e connected to the pins 15 in the instrument case 16 which has a s pacer 17; In addition, connections are provided for the drivemotor and an electrical heating element which may be of the film type made"a part of the dase.

.The entir e instmment case is hermetically"sealed and filled with a gas, preferably some inertgas Such as helium.

The schematit 1of FIGURE 3 is nsedvto defifne the arameters and geometry of the sensitive elemeht. Tl1e quar'1tities and their definitibns'arie als fol lows:

' Sensitive .axis: An axis pe rpendicnlar.tothe pivot axis of the'pendulum and the axis about which th eiwliole assem b lyi is rotated at an angular velociity, W.

W=Angula 1' velocity in radians per second.v k M Mass of asy' etric pendulum w'ithcetxter of gravity at radius, R from pivot axis.' 7 M-=Mass oli each of two penduluinsarranged to be symmetrioal. about the pivot axis (the arms are colinear and thejcenters of gravity are at radius R A=Displcernent angle inradians between the plane normal'to the sensitive axis'a'nd the center line of the asymmetn'c pendulum. The signal generator prodnces a voltage ronghly proportional to this angle.

5 B=Fixedangle between center lines of the asyxiimetric and the symmetricpendu-lums.

k=Sp'ring constant in dyne-eentimetiefs per fadian of the y torsion wire supports. g=Localacceleration of gravity in centimeters, per sec- 1t) ondisgpiariad.v (Approximately980:Ctn./Seo.)

The asseh:ibly illustrated in FIGURE 3 alsoyincludes 1 -selected so that the assembly is restrained very stiflijr 7 15 fr om any rotation or tilt about an axisperpendieular to. both the, pendubns axisand thesensitive axis.

In actual use, the instrument is carefully levele'd,so

thaitthesexisitive axis is along the local vertical; In this position, gravity acting on the symmetric pendulumj 20 produces no net torque tending to change the angle, A,-

but acting'on the asymmetric pendulum does. produce a torquetendii1g to incr ease the deflection angle,A: 011 the other band, the rotationof the whole assembly about the sensitive 1 axis produces alt0r'que couple due toth e. lSymmetric pendulums and a torque due to the asymmetric pendulum, both tending to decrease the deflection angle A; In addition, the torsion wire suspension pro duces a vefy small torque tending to reduce the defleC- The ih1pbrtzinfperformance arameters ot this instrument are: i ts sensitivity andits precisionor aceuracy. The first of these, sensitivity,refeps to the ability of the instrument to detect minute changes'inthe force of gravity. In this instrument, this is the ratio of the incremental change in angle A causedby an incremen tal change in g, o: simply the derivative, dA/ dg'the fota: tio'nal speed, W, being kept, constant. The deflectional angle is detected by the electrical signal. generat0r and,

therefore, sensitivity is limited ultimatelyby the uncertainty or noise level of theisignalgenerator.

However, as will be shown, the angular -sens itivity of this.iflstrunient can be made so great withspecial arrangementof the sYmmetric and unsymmetric'masses that the Signal generator uncertinty =does notactually limit the sensitivity of apracticalinstrument l The precision 015 accuracy of the in'struxn'ent refrs.to its ability to measure predisely minute ch2ing es inthe.

rotational speed, W, resulting from minute variatibiis', in

the force of gravity. Consider thatthe instrnmeht;has been setup and caQrefullY ballnced, therotational;speed noted,and the instrument is now mvedto a i1ew locai tion having a different value 'of g and is rebalanced.l The accuracy then is fixed by ;thecliange in rotational speed resulting from this small change in g, 01' sirnp1y the derivative dW/dg, the defleotion' ang1e being const-ant at zero.

differentiated as follows: 7

-is made s ui:h that this criticzllvalueof A The actual limitation on Precisidn then is the abilitY of frequency measuring instrument tomeasure this spekad .change.

Cnsidering first the adgula; siansitivity, equation 4 is 'MiRj/k is nideto halle a Fdr A inltially zero:

frorn the following:-

AA=A (A initally zero) t Ag By ijeferent: to equafion 4;it isgen.that thdnomlnal value o f W? corresponding to the nominalvaluei of g with A=O is: 4

Bcause the coefiicientof A isnegative theensltivity becomes infim'tgwhen the angle, A, reaches the value 3g 1 1 radians at which the denominator vanishes. This means [that With the rotational speed, W, adjusted 10 precisely balance the pendulous assembly under some; specjfic value of g, and now the value 013 g is gradually increased, the anglc, A, will increase slowly until it reaches 'the critical 39 MIR],

at which point it Will increasc rapidly evc1i wit hopt fur ther increas'ixl g. By desigh, the sensitivity- 'at is always reached for the ddsired threshold change in g. For example, if a -thriashold of gx10 i is desirec l, -the dg:sign parame'ter The above is illustrative only.l The ux 1iqlie feafi1're cf device is that its sensitivity can be made to' increase with-- out bound, that is, can be made arbitiarily large. Inasinuch as tlie angular sensitivity Can' bemade arbitrarily large, the electrical sensitivity (output voltage per g) can be made arbitrarily large.

Considering next the angular velocitY 01' frequency discrimination sensitivity, qquation 4 is difierentiated as follows (the deflection angle, A, being held zero by adjustmentofW):

Substituting the nomipalvlu bf W as indicated by equa- 7 tion 11:

' dW W- This equation states simply that the preciion of the instrument is determined by the precision with which the rotational speed can be measured. Thns; if a precision of measurement of g to one part in million is desired, the speed must be measured to an accuracy cf /2 part in 100'millioh. Since this speed meaisurement is redcddfo measurement of the frequency of an alternating current genertor and ptecisionin the order of 0ne part in one thousand.million is available frdm commercial labora tory instruments, such precision may be readily attained.

One meahs 11:0 obtain altrnating currents cf very precisely-knoWn fiequehcy is shown schematicallY in FIG- UKE 4. Here a cr3ital c0ntrolled osci flator 18 with Value around 6 a in ferred are in common usage today and need yin detail here.

appropriate frequency division ;is used with an amplifier 19 :to drive a synchronous motor 20 .s uch' -as a hYste1esis motl'. This motor 20, in turn'Q drives the armature of a small alternator 21 througl1 appropriate gearing;. I'he .frequency of this ultra stable system is chosen to pro-1 duce a speed correspondingto, sbme anbitrary reference value of gravity. An adjustable audio oscillator 22 with appropriate frequency division is us'ed with :a second amplifier 23 to drive a second synchronous motor 24. 2 This mt tor 24, in turn drives what is normally :the Statur ofthe smallalternator through a gear trainhaving a gear ratio :as small as one millionth that Cf the first motor;

for exarnple.: Thus, the outpu-t alternating yoltage ofthe.

small alternator 21 is prebisely related 10 the suin or the diifere'nce 0f the frequencies of the crystal oscillatof 18 andtheadjustable audio osciillator 22. The relative precision required of the two oscillators is the ratio of nced m-as5 M1 andthewente'r line joining the two bal+ nced masses M is made 90 and the sensitive element 4 is asSem'bledso that the mill osition of the de'vice cor:

respond s to the physic al .position -in which the -1 adit1 sf- 7 the unbalanced mass is vert ica-l (coinciden-t with the sen sitive axis) with theunbalanc'ed mass above the center line of the balanced masses.

By inspection of FIGUR'E, 5 and using the quantitieS as defined in column 3, lines*2 through 7 the equationof lnotion of the pendulous assembly of this embodimen'tare derived in the followingz- F0r convenience, the ndditional.definitions are made;

' l Moment of inertia otthe' pndulotis uassembly for the fundamental crystal frequency to the audio frequency gen'6rated sby the audio osoillator and the relative .gear

ratios. Thns, the precision required oftheai1dio oscillator is of a 10W order.

-The :two driving motors may be -arranged to drive the shaft o f the sensitive element direotly so that the alternator would}be eliminated. A sim-ilar arrangernent of 0ne motor drivingthe statoi of the other may be used or diflerential gearingmay be employed. 7

Funther, in act-ual practieethe entire system would J: e made automatic. 'Ihusthe e1ec t1fical signal from the sensitive element wouldfbefmplified and cai1sed 10 operate an electnic motor geared 10 control the frequency of the audio oscillator, With this closed loop 'arrangment the frequency is automaticzilly adjusted to maintai1ithe sensitive element signgl at zeroand thus ;to automatically maintain the balance of to1ques acting on the pendulous assembly. Methods for :this type .of autmation The calibratioi1 of the'systeni may now .be derivecl.

In the following, W is 'used toindit:te the 'norninal speed of the sensitive element es established by the crystal oscillator and AWis used t'o" ii1dicate the increase in speed establishediby the vernier control or auxiliary audio oscillator. -Rewriti1ig Eqution4reniemberingihatthe leflection angle, A, isfl maintained'at null or zer0:

lt'is. important to note that: even'tip to very lafge.vatiz tions in gravity the cailibracion of the instrument is essentially' linear. This is simply a result cf the fa :t that the ratio Tof'the change in speed =to the nominal speed is l VCIYSIIIR-ll,

FIGUR E '5 illustrates'scliematicallY another'mode 013 -ope'ration 'ofthe =basic inventin. In this mode bf opertion, the angle between the radius o f the single imbal not be described' 'Recall the iden tityi angu lar motion about the pendulous axis. C=Coeflicient ofdamping as determined by the geometry of the float and the case and the viscosity'dfiht2fl0tm 1 den fluid such that the product dD/at is the viscous damping torque. D=Displacement angle in rediansbetween the sensitive 1 axis -and the radius of the asymmetric pendulum. D==9 QA By dAlem-berts principle, the sum of thetorques zict-" This second order. diifexential equ zttion is that o fen bscillatory system having anatural frequency ofr Tims; if the speed, W, is adjusted so that W is real, the centra-l 'assen1bly willfidscillat: Whendisturbed .and

damp or settle to a position withfD'=0. If tliespeedrW is adjustedso that W =0 the assembly will experience no net torque and Will rest .a t any .set position. Under,

- this adjustmen if g is' inereased ever so slightly, the

cent-ral asse nibly Will rotatd .coritinnonslY 'tnitil' it hits m:chanical.stoias (not sho&vn). This is"the conditionbf .lllfi.lflitS6ll5ljiiVlt}h 7 This made Cf operation h2is' the :advantage tha}t, in the nu1l position',-the pendulou's'assembly is completelv balanced with respect to the sensitive axis so that thereis no net force .tending m move the entire a ssembly offcenter; Thus, the efIect -of the;fluid in the rotating field. is to keep the float as'senmbly precisely at the center of rotation. i The deviceofthis invention thus. produoes: an ;instrument for themeasurexnent of the acceleration of gravity wvhich is hermetically sealed withrem0te eleotrical indi-I cation of the measurement, unusual sensitivity over a gr'eatly exterided total djmarnid 1 ange' with the measurement made frori1 the frequenbykif ein alternatixigvbltage of rotational speed to great precision, and bf r'ugged de sign readily portable and adapted 10 extended use in the field with infrequent recalibration. While the above description discloses a limited number of embodiments of the device of ihr's invention, =it is possible to produce still other embodiments without departing from the spirit thereof, and it is desired, therefore, that only such limitations shall be imposed upon the appended claims as are stated .therein or required by the prior art.

What I claim is:

1. In an instrument for the precise measurement cf the acceleration of gravity means including a pendulous element constrained to a pivot axis and maintained at near neutral buoyancy in a fluid, said pendulous element having means including an arrangement of three co-planar concentrations of mass, two of said concentrations of masses being on the same center line through and balanced about the pivot axis of said pendulous element and a third mass being on a radius through said pivot axis intersecting the center line of said balanced pair of masses, means to rotate said pendulous element together With a case containing said supporting fluid about an axis normal to said pivot axis, means to precisely control and indicate remotely the rotational speed so that the force cf gravity may be inferred precisely from the rotational speed required to maintain said pendulous element in its neutral osition relative to said axis cf rotation, said axis of rotation being aligned generally along the local vertical.

2. A device for measuring gravitational force or variatious therein by means of an assembly ananged for rotation about an axis, said assembly mounting an element, said element being made integral with a float, said element and float being surrounded by a case, a fluid C011- tained by said case so that said element and float are supported approximately at neutral buoyancy, and being arranged to have limited freedom to rotate about another axis perpendicular to the axis of rotation, said element having three centers of mass, two of said ceuters of mass disposed so that the torques resulting from gravitational force on said two centers of mass are balanced yet the centrifugal force resulting from rotation produces a torque about the axis of limited freedom, the third center cf mass is unbalanced and arranged so that an opposing torque results from the gravitatioual force acting on said nnbalanced mass; means to indicate externally rotation 015 said element about said per'pendicular axis, and means for precision control and adjustment of the speed of rotation of said assembly. v

3. A device for measuring gravitational force or varia tions therein by means cf an assembly arranged for Iota tion about an axis, said assembly mounting an element, said element being made integral with a float, said float assembly being surrounded by-a case; a fluid contained by said case so that said float assemblY is supported approximately at neutral buoyancy, and being arranged to have limited freedom to rotate about another axis perpendicular to the axis of rotatiom said element having three centers of mass, two of said centers of mass disposed so that the torques resulting from gravitational force on said two Centers of mass are balanced yet the centrifugal force res'ulting from rotation produces a torque about the axis 'of limited freedom, the third center of mass is unbalanced and arranged so that an opposing torque results from the gravitational force acting on said unhalanced mass, means including an electrical signaling device and slip rings on the axis cf rotation to indicate ex ternally rotation of said element with respect to said axis cf rotation; and means for precision control and adjustment of the speed of rotation of said assembly.

4. A device for measuning gravitational force or varitions therein by means of an assembly arranged for rotation about an axis, said device including, in combination witl1 said assembly, a fluid-Containing case surrounding said assembly, means floating in the fluid of said case for supporting said assembly at approximately neutral buoyancy, and With limited freedom to rotate about another axis perpendicular to the axis of rotation, an element mounted within said assembly, said element having three Centers of mass, two of said centers of mass disposed so that the torques resulting from :gravitational force on said two centers of mass are balanced yet the centrifugal force resulting from rotation produces a torque about the axis of limited freedom, the third Center of mass is unbalanced and arranged so an opposing torque results from the gravitational force acting on said unbalanced mass; means to indicate externally rotation of said element away from its normal position with respect to the axis of rotation; and means for precision control and adjustrnent cf the speed 01; rotation of said assembly, including coupling to a synchronous motor supplied current from an alternating current generator the frequency of whieh is adjustable, highly stable, and accurately'calibrated.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS RICHARD C. QUEISSER, Primary Examz'ner.

D. SCHONBERG, Examiner. 

1. IN AN INSTRUMENT FOR THE PRECISE MEASUREMENT OF THE ACCELERATION OF GRAVITY MEANS INCLUDING A PENDULOUS ELEMENT CONSTRAINED TO A PIVOT AXIS AND MAINTAINED AT NEAR NEUTRAL BUOYANCY IN A FLUID, SAID PENDULOUS ELEMENT HAVING MEANS INCLUDING AN ARRANGEMENT OF THREE CO-PLANAR CONCENTRATIONS OF MASS, TWO OF SAID CONCENTRATIONS OF MASSES BEING ON THE SAME CENTER LINE THROUGH AND BALANCED ABOUT THE PIVOT AXIS OF SAID PENDULOUS ELEMENT AND A THIRD MASS BEING ON A RADIUS THROUGH SAID PIVOT AXIS INTERSECTING THE CENTER LINE OF SAID BALANCED PAIR OF MASSES, 